Most elite athletes don't just compete against each other. They spend years training to be faster, stronger and more competent than any other person has ever been in their chosen sport.
Every year, world records are broken, sometimes by considerable margins, in many different sports. But will humans ever reach a ceiling in what can be achieved?
Dr Kate Murphy of the University of Melbourne says that physiologists and scientists look to energy systems and mechanical forces for clues to understanding where limits lie.
“In terms of sprinting events, limits for us [as scientists] would refer to the maximum rates muscles can contract and relax.”
Physical attributes and raw athletic ability is only part of the performance equation. Dr Murphy says a number of different attributes contribute to sporting prowess, including recovery methods, rehabilitation from injury, and nutrition. Preparation and mental focus are also important.
“Psychology is a big one,” says Dr Murphy. “That's still in its early days as well.”
Technology is increasingly emerging as important in competitive sports that rely on speed, such as swimming.
“Michael Phelps is a phenomenal swimmer. He sits very high in the water, has very little resistance when he swims and that had really given him an edge over the other swimmers.
“But what the skin suits did was basically took away Michael's edge. Since they've removed the skin suits, very few records have been broken.”
In speed-related sports where athletes can finish a fraction of a second apart, “margins will get smaller,” Dr Murphy says.
Given the broad range of factors impacting on performance, and the possibility of new training methods and technologies, humans are unlikely to reach their limits in many sporting events in the near future.
“I personally don't think we'll reach a limit. I think we'll just continue to break records.”
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